40 deaths have been confirmed so far; fire would have started due to the use of flares and fireworks that would have passed too close to the ceiling
It has left 119 people injured so far, of which 113 have been identified, including 14 French, 11 Italians and four Serbs, police reported this Friday (2). Authorities have confirmed 40 deaths to date. “Around 50 injured people have been or will soon be transferred to European countries, to centers specializing in severe burns,” said Mathias Reynard, president of the government of the canton of Valais, at a press conference in Sion.
The fire was probably caused by fireworks or flares lit inside the establishment, said the prosecutor for the Swiss canton of Valais. “Everything indicates that the fire originated from fireworks or flares placed on champagne bottles, very close to the ceiling. This caused a rapid, very rapid and widespread fire,” declared Béatrice Pilloud during a press conference. The prosecutor also explained that authorities questioned the French couple who run the bar that caught fire in the sophisticated ski resort.
*With information from Estadão Conteúdo
